


Can you teach me?

by asamandra



Category: Marvel, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: ASL, Deaf Clint Barton, Getting Together, M/M, Natasha Is a Good Bro, Pre-Slash, Prompt Fill, Tony learns ASL, avengerkink
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-26
Updated: 2015-03-02
Packaged: 2018-03-15 08:37:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,175
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3440636
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/asamandra/pseuds/asamandra
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony learns sign language for Clint</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This prompt at avengerkink: [Clint/Tony, deaf!Clint, Tony learns sign language for Clint](http://avengerkink.livejournal.com/20598.html?thread=49679478#t49679478)
> 
> What's on the tin. =)

Natasha was on her way from the gym up to her apartment. But to get there, she had to switch elevators. There was only one elevator to get to their private quarters and it started on their communal floor. Security measures, Tony had said, and he was right. 

And so Natasha just left the other elevator, a towel over her shoulder and a bottle of water in her hand when she crossed the living room to get to the private elevator. She was already out of the door when her brain started to process what she just had seen and so she walked backwards back into the living room. And stared at the genius, sitting in an armchair, a StarkPad on his knees, and gesturing wildly with his hands. She watched him for a few minutes and he didn't even realize that she stood there, he was way too concentrated in his gesturing.

The gestures Tony made looked a little bit like ASL. She knew ASL because Clint had taught her and it seemed as if Tony tried to learn it as well. But he made lots of mistakes. 

“What are you doing?” She finally asked and Tony's head snapped up. He moved his hands behind his back as if he was caught doing something forbidden. 

“Nothing,” he said, maybe a little bit too fast and then he blushed. Tony Stark blushed and Natasha's eyes went wide. 

“Well, it doesn't look like nothing,” she said and went over to him. He blushed even more. “Are you trying to learn ASL?” 

“No,” he said and when Natasha raised her brow he huffed. “Okay, yes. But it's difficult,” he admitted. Natasha smiled and sat down in the armchair opposite of him. 

“I know,” she said, reached over, took the StarkPad and looked at it. And Tony blushed even more when she looked up again. He bit his lip and stared at his hands. 

“I can explain that,” he finally mumbled and Natasha shook her head.

“You want to ask Clint out on a date,” she stated and it seemed is if Tony just wanted to deny but then he sighed and nodded.

“Yes. Do you think he would want to go on a date with me?” He asked. Natasha scrutinized him for a long moment before she nodded. 

“Do you know the D-shape?” She asked and Tony immediately moved his right hand, raised the index finger and touched the other fingers. Natasha reached out and corrected it slightly and Tony smiled. “You need to do it with both hands,” she said and Tony moved his other hand into the same shape. “Hands slightly apart, palms facing each other, both hands in D-shape and then touch at the fingertips, pull them apart about an inch-and-a-half and bring them together again.”

Tony followed her instructions. 

“Yes, that's right, just use a small, quick movement,” she said and demonstrated it. Tony repeated it and when Natasha nodded his smile broadened. “That's it. That means 'do you want to go on a date?'.”

“Wow, thanks,” he said and his smile was really grateful. Natasha watched him another long moment before she raised her right hand, her thumb, index finger and pinkie outstretched, the other two bent. “What does that mean?” 

“I love you,” Natasha explained and Tony blushed violently but she saw him already memorize the gesture. “That's the shorthand. You can also use this,” she pointed at herself, then she crossed her wrists over her heart as if hugging someone and then pointed at Tony with her hand, palm up. 

“What if...” Tony started and blushed once more, “what if I want to tell him that he's beautiful?” 

Natasha smiled, pointed at Tony and then made a move that looked as if she wiped her face. Tony repeated it and Natasha had to correct him at first but then he did it correctly.

“Thank you,” he said and Natasha's grin broadened and she brought her right hand to her lips and moved it down. 

When Natasha rose and went back to the door, Tony stopped her. “Uhm... do you think...” he took a deep breath. “Can you teach me more?” He finally asked.

“You know that he has his hearing aids and can hear you when you speak, right?” She asked but now it was Tony who smirked. 

“Yeah, but he can't wear them all the time,” he said and now it was Natasha who felt the heat rise in her cheeks. But then she reached into the pocket of her sweats, took her mobile and opened the calendar. 

“Meet me at nine pm in my apartment,” she said and looked up at Tony who nodded and then smiled and lifted his right hand to his lips and then moved it down. She left without another comment, just a smile and went to the elevator. She pressed the button and took a sip of water. About damn time that these two idiots get their heads out of their asses – the ust was nearly palpable lately - and with a smile on her face she pressed the button to her apartment when the cabin finally arrived.


	2. Chapter 2

“Sir, Agent Barton just entered the elevator to the communal floor,” JARVIS finally announced and Tony dropped the screwdriver he had had in his hand. He rose, walked to the door, stopped, licked his lip, walked back and stopped himself again. 

“No. No, you can do it, Tony. You... you can do it. Natasha said... Natasha said he would want to go on a date. You can do it, Tony,” he encouraged himself and turned back to the door. But when he wanted to walk over to the door he saw the archer behind the glass wall of his lab.

“JARVIS!” Tony yelped but then he shut his mouth when the younger man smiled at him. 

“I'm sorry, sir, he stopped the elevator before I could warn you,” the AI explained and Tony swallowed. Clint raised his brow and pointed at the locked door. 

“Okay, you can do that,” he muttered under his breath, looked up and when Clint pointed at the door again he shook his head. Clint frowned, raised his shoulder questioningly but Tony moved his hands, held them, palms up, in front of his chest, a bit to the side and wiggled his fingers. _Wait._

He pressed both index fingers to his thumbs and raised the other fingers in the F-shape and used an alternating forward and back motion. _I'll explain._

Clint looked at him, his mouth open and a stunned expression on his face. 

With his right hand Tony formed a C being drawn back like a bow. _Clint._ He pointed at him, raised both hands and moved them forward and back two times. _You are awesome._

Clint's brows hit his hairline but Tony took a deep breath and his signing became more fluent.

_Since I met you I can't stop thinking about you. You are sweet and cute and amazing. You are kind and funny and sarcastic and witty._

The tips of Clint's ears became red and Tony couldn't hold back a smile. He raised both hands in the D-shape and touched the fingertips two times and then pointed at himself. _Do you want to go on a date with me?_

Clint's mouth fell open and then he mouthed 'What?' Tony looked at his hands. He'd done it right, right? But just to be sure he repeated it. _Do you want to go on a date with me?_

Clint pointed at the door. “JARVIS,” Tony said and the AI opened it. 

“Tony...” Clint said when he entered. He opened and closed his mouth a few times and then he signed _Are you serious?_

Tony nodded and Clint swallowed. He cocked his head, looked at him for a long moment and Tony bit his lip, he wasn't sure why he didn't answer. 

But then Clint pointed at him, Tony, then he held his left hand in front of his chest and with his right hand he made a gesture that looked as if he took something and put it up to his forehead. He raised the index fingers of both hands and drew a few large circles with the tip of each index finger before he moved his right hand to his forehead and then made the Y-shape, spread thumb and pinkie and the other fingers bent. _Why did you learn to sign?_

“For you,” Tony said and licked his lips. Clint blinked a few times and then he repeated his last sign, the _why_ sign. 

“Because this,” Tony signed _sign_ , “... is part of you.” 

Clint made a few steps in his direction and bit his lip.

“You really mean it?” He asked. Tony nodded and looked at his feet. 

“Yes, every word... well... every sign,” he said. He looked up and met Clint's eyes. “What do you say?” The archer was close, so, so close.

“Yes,” he smiled and Tony couldn't stop himself from smiling as well because Clint had the most beautiful smile he'd ever seen and it was... somehow... infectious. 

“Yes?” He blurted when his brain started to process what he had heard just a second before. 

“Yes,” Clint nodded and his smile broadened a little. “I... I'd like to go on a date with you.” 

“Really?” Tony couldn't stop himself. Apparently his brain didn't work properly when Clint was so close. 

“Really,” Clint repeated. 

“You know you've ruined my plan, right?” Tony suddenly asked and Clint cocked his head and raised a brow. 

“Plan?” 

“Yeah, I... I had a plan... you know... to ask you. But then you suddenly stood outside of my lab and... why did you come to my lab, by the way?” 

“Oh... uhm...” Clint blushed but then he reached into the pocket of his cargo pants and pulled out a small package, clumsily wrapped in purple paper with a bow on top. “I have something for you.” 

“For me? But... why?” Tony felt something warm in his chest when he took the package. No one gave him presents. 

“It's nothing spectacular. But I've seen it in... damn... classified... well, I've seen it and I had to think of you and... well...” He shrugged and licked his lips. 

Tony opened the package carefully and looked in the box, stared for a few seconds before he started laughing. He threw his head back and couldn't stop for two whole minutes. “That's...” he said with a smile. “Clint, that's perfect.” 

“You like it?” Clint asked and looked hopefully at him and Tony only nodded, still smiling broadly. 

“Of course I like it. It's... it's perfect. But... why did you bring me a present?” 

And now Clint chuckled. “Because I wanted to ask you if you want to go on a date with me,” he grinned. 

“Really?” Tony blurted and Clint nodded.

“Yes, really.” 

“So... uhm... how about this evening? I mean... if you don't have other plans,” Tony asked and Clint nodded again. 

“I don't have plans. Well, now I do,” he said and smiled once more. “I have to go to the debriefing now but...” 

“... this evening we're going out.” Tony finished his sentence and Clint nodded once more and smiled. 

“Yes, I... I'm looking forward to it.” Clint turned to the door and made a few steps but then he turned back.

“You've learned ASL just to ask me out?” He asked again and cocked his head. Tony blushed violently.

“Well... not only to ask you out. I figured...” he stopped and blushed even more. “I figured that you won't wear your hearing aids all the time,” he admitted and the tips of Clint's ears went red again. 

“And how...” 

“Natasha,” Tony answered before Clint could finish his question. 

“So, that's why she canceled all of our sparing dates the last weeks,” he smiled and Tony bit his lip but smiled when he nodded. Clint turned back to the door and left but before he entered the elevator he looked back at Tony, raised his right hand in the V-shape, touched his cheek right beyond the eye with the middle finger before he bent it and stretched out the thumb and pointed at Tony with his index finger. _See you later._

Tony formed the V-shape with both hands, raised them, the right above the left and pointed with all the fingers two times at Clint. _Looking forward to it._

Clint smiled again, touched his lips with the flat hand and blew a kiss in Tony's direction. And then the elevator door closed. Tony looked at the package on the work table beside him, took it and opened it again. No one ever brought him a present just because they thought of him. He smiled and placed the tiny Mr. Potato Head in Iron Man suit onto a shelf where he could see him all the time. It was really cute and perfect and funny. Just like Clint. And with a happy smile on his face he went back to the repulsor he needed to repair.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Mr. Potato Head 'Tony Starch'](http://technabob.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/iron-man-2-mr-potato-head-tony-starch.jpg)
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> I don't know ASL, so I used a few pages I found in the internet.  
> [American Sign Language University](http://www.lifeprint.com/index.htm)  
> [American Sign Language Dictionary](http://www.handspeak.com/word/)  
> If it's not correct, please let me know.

**Author's Note:**

> [asamandra on tumblr](http://asamandra.tumblr.com/)


End file.
